


I almost lost you

by autisticblueteam



Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: Autistic Character, Autistic Character(s), M/M, Multi, Season/Series 13 Spoilers, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-21
Updated: 2015-12-21
Packaged: 2018-05-08 05:42:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5485721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/autisticblueteam/pseuds/autisticblueteam
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Caboose was sat in a makeshift hospital bed, his torso wrapped in bandages and whimpering softly with his face all scrunched up. His hair was down from its ponytail, loose around his shoulders. He was pale. He looked terrible, but he was <i>alive</i>. He was sat up and he was very much <i>alive</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I almost lost you

**Author's Note:**

> The other prompt I got yesterday was from buddahthebob, and was for the dialogue "I almost lost you" and Caboosington. Due to where this falls in my timeline it does have hints of Blue Team OT3, but it is Caboosington focused.

They’d killed the remains of Hargrove’s forces with ease, their alien weaponry and superior skill and the sheer drive they had to get to their family making it simple. That and the fact that, despite all the odds, the simulation troopers inside that room had held their own and taken down most of the forces themselves. That gave them hope.

But the scene that greeted them in the trophy room could only be compared to a nightmare. The floor was littered with black armoured soldiers who’d met their end, but amidst the sea of black and of blood there were splashes of colour.

Carolina had seen them first, pain filling her as memories of a vision that was never meant to come true flashed behind her eyes; she’d ran to the first blob of colour, an unconscious Sarge, with an angry shout of orders. Simmons was at her side, bleeding but conscious, within moments. Grif was trying to help keep Donut from bleeding out. Doc was alternating between begging for Donut to be okay and O’Malley yelling, trying to keep him in control of his emotions so he could help. Red team was a mess, but they were alive.

Washington’s attention was caught by the helmet, first. Images of an old friend flashing through him and making his head hurt as the two memories collided, and then a pain blossoming in his chest as the helmet dropped out of his line of sight as its new owner collapsed. Wash’s eyes followed as adrenaline began to pump through him once again, but saw that Tucker hadn’t collapsed; no, he was following the motion of the other member of his team and trying to keep him upright.

Caboose.

“Caboose, Caboose! Hey, hey buddy, stay with me,” Tucker was saying, his voice strained and cracking, “Caboose, Caboose stay with me. Come on!”

Washington was at their side in an instant.

“What happened?”

“Wash−”

“What happened, Tucker?!” He didn’t mean to snap. No, he didn’t mean to snap. He resisted the growing urge to tear off his helmet and claw at his neck. He settled, instead, for digging his teeth into his cheek.

“I-I don’t know! He seemed fine and then he just fucking collapsed! Caboose, Caboose, stay with us Mikey c’mon,” Tucker’s voice broke more and more as he spoke. He was shaking and stumbling. Washington knew there had to be something wrong with him too, but right now they were both focused on Caboose.

He helped Tucker hold the blue soldier up, flicking his eyes over him for any signs of injury. A dribble of blood running down his side made Washington’s breath catch in his throat, and he looked at his chest plate. A single bullet hole. A single, _fucking_ bullet hole in his chest plate.

“DOCTOR GREY!”

The yell made Tucker jump. Even the half-conscious Caboose whimpered at the volume of the words. Tucker rested the visor of his helmet against the side of the other man’s head. Washington flinched, shuffling closer; taking a hold of Caboose’s hand he rested his head against the other side of Caboose’s helmet.

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry Caboose. Stay with me, come on. Stay with me,” And maybe it was selfish, to say ‘me’. But he didn’t really care. Not right now.

Grey was at their side in what felt like no time at all, and after that everything seemed to somehow go in slow motion and fast forward at the same time. Caboose squirmed and whimpered and gasped as Grey did everything she could to help him. Wash’s chest hurt as Caboose cried out at the burning sensation of the Biofoam filling his bullet wound. He felt himself start to go numb when Tucker collapsed, whatever injuries he had finally taking their toll as adrenaline faded. He nearly punched Andersmith when he came up behind him. Then he had Tucker on his back. Then they were back on the Pelican. They were leaving the Staff of Charon, leaving Hargrove and revenge behind in favour of saving their family. Their family that was riddled with bullet wounds and bruises and a broken bone or two or ten between them.

He spent the ride back down to Chorus with pain searing through his every nerve and Andersmith’s hands wrapped around his wrists to stop him from clawing at his neck. Carolina was curled into a ball on her side, Kimball sat beside her. He and Carolina had developed a system, but they couldn’t help the other when they were both in the clutches of a meltdown.

* * *

Hours later his meltdown had faded away to a dull throbbing at the base of his skull and a tightness in his throat. Washington sat outside the makeshift medical bay with his head leant against the wall and his teeth tugging at his cheek, rocking back and forth where he sat. He’d lost track of how long he’d been waiting. The world around him seemed dull and quiet and he hadn’t spoken to anyone in that time. It wasn’t easy to ask questions when you’d gone non-verbal and no one who could answer your questions spoke sign language.

Carolina was missing. He knew she’d turn up eventually; he knew she would be hiding somewhere in the cool, dark wreck of the crashed ship as she shut down and became even number to the outside world than he was. Kimball had come by to see how he was a few times, but she spoke just as little sign language as everyone else so the conversation was one-sided. Since her last visit no one had walked through this hallway, leaving him in silence.

So when the door opened he all but jumped out of his skin.

“Wash, it’s just me,” Grey said, her voice lacking its usual chipper tone. It was odd, Wash thought. It somehow made him feel calmer and more on edge at the same time, “I’m all done fixing them up, but!” She added as Washington all but jumped to his feet, “But I just want to talk to you first, mm’kay?”

Washington nodded. He’d listen. He’d listen if it meant he could go in there.

“Good! Okay, Wash, first things first: are you okay?”

Wash’s brow furrowed. That wasn’t important.

“Now now don’t give me that look!” Grey said, tutting and shaking her head, “I know the signs. I know exactly what you just went through! Are you okay? Or _going_ to be okay?”

Wash paused. He’d think that information over later. For now, he simply nodded.

“Alright, I’ll take your word for it. I’ll be bringing you by some snacks and some water when you’re with your team,” Grey continued, and Wash’s interest peaked again, “Now, bad news first.”

Blood filled his mouth as he bit too hard.

“Tucker is going to be out for quite a while. Turns out that being a super soldier is super draining on the body’s energy reserves! He’s got to ‘recharge’, get that energy back. He wasn’t adequately prepared to run that suit, but there’s no lasting damage,” She said, gaining back a little bit of her usual energy. Washington could only vaguely nod, his hands twitching to sign but dropping, “Oh, do you speak sign language? Oh do go ahead!”

He blinked, but with his hand curled into a fist with a slightly extended thumb he held it by his chin, moving it forward. Then, for lack of a sign to show what he meant, he tapped the back of his neck.

Grey’s eyes widened and her mouth made an ‘o’ shape, “Oh! Oh no, it’s nothing to do with Epsilon. He fragmented inside his armour, not inside his neural implant.”

Wash felt the breath leave him before he was aware he was holding it.

“Now, good news. Caboose was… touch and go, for a while there. He lost a lot of blood, and there was _quite_ a bit of internal damage!” Grey said, “But it was nothing I couldn’t fix up. He’s going to be just fine, Washington. In fact, he’s already awake! He−”

Wash had pushed past her the second he heard the word ‘awake’.

Caboose was sat in a makeshift hospital bed, his torso wrapped in bandages and whimpering softly with his face all scrunched up. His hair was down from its ponytail, loose around his shoulders. He was pale. He looked _terrible_ , but he was _alive_. He was sat up and he was very much _alive_.

Caboose turned and saw him before he could take another step, “Wash!”

Washington ran over to his side, feeling hot tears forming in his eyes and clambering onto the bed with all the grace of the least graceful thing you can think of. His hands flew to the sides of Caboose’s head, lacing into his hair and bringing them as close together as he could manage without hurting the other man. Their foreheads bumped together, and he felt himself begin to sob.

Caboose didn’t say anything, but he leant into the touch. He nuzzled their noses together, too, and made Washington choke out a weak laugh through his sobs and tears and return the gesture. That was how they stayed for a long time as Wash gasped for air and refused to move away, tears constantly dripping from his cheeks onto Caboose’s bandaged chest.

“Why are you crying, Wash?” Caboose asked after a time, nuzzling their noses again, “I am okay! Tucker is okay too! Nice lady Grey told me! We do not need to cry!”

Wash took a deep breath, coughing weakly as he choked on his tears and tried to will himself to speak. He opened his mouth a few times, closing it again almost instantly as the words refused to come. Caboose sat patiently, nuzzling their noses every now and then, until Wash finally felt a sound escape himself.

“I…” He swallowed hard, his voice broken by sobs, “I a-almost _lost_ y-you. I-I almost l-lost you, M-Mikey.”

He pulled away from their position touching foreheads just long enough to press a kiss to Caboose’s brow, combing his fingers through his hair as his body began to shake. Caboose’s arms were wrapped around him in moments, and he found himself with his head buried against the larger man’s neck as he continued to cry. Real names, even nicknames for real names, meant something important or serious; that was an unspoken rule.

“I am sorry,” Caboose said, holding Washington closer, “I will not do that again!”

Washington shook his head, sitting up carefully and holding his head gently between his hands, “No. N-No. It’s not your fault. Y-You did amazingly, buddy. You d-did amazing. You d-did nothing wrong. I was just s-so… so…” He couldn’t find the words to express how utterly terrified he had been. There were no words for that feeling.

But Caboose nodded. Because of course he understood.

“B-But you’re okay. Y-You’re okay. Y-You’re okay, right?”

“My chest is all…” He made vague gestures with his hands, pulling a face Wash recognised as him trying to find his words, “Hurty! But yes I am okay!”

Wash knew that. Of course he knew that. Grey had told him Caboose was okay. He just had to hear it from Caboose. He had to hear him say it too.

“G-Good. G-Good…” He took a deep breath, brushing Caboose’s hair from his face. Caboose smiled at him, wincing a little behind it but a smile nonetheless. Wash even managed to smile back, just slightly, before he pressed a tender kiss to Caboose’s lips and rested their foreheads together once again, “I-I love you, Michael. I love you.”

He hadn’t said that before. Not out loud.

Caboose’s face lit up, and Washington found himself in the closest thing to Caboose’s usual crushing hug the man could manage without hurting himself.

“I love you too!” He beamed, nuzzling his head against Wash’s and squishing him close, bouncing where he sat. Washington laughed despite the tears falling down his face, “I love you too!”

Washington buried his head against his neck, laughing weakly against his skin and holding him close, “H-Happy buddy?”

Caboose didn’t answer aloud, but his continued bouncing answered for him. Washington purred against his neck, making Caboose giggle at the vibrating sensation on his skin, and felt himself start to relax. Caboose was okay. Caboose was going to be okay.

“N-No telling Tucker I said that to you f-first, okay? He’ll get jealous, and then he’ll get whiny,” He teased, relaxing against the side of Caboose’s chest where he hadn’t been shot. Caboose would tell him if he was uncomfortable.

“It will be our special secret!” Caboose said, nodding energetically and then whining as it hurt his head. Wash kissed his temple, “I am very happy, Washingtub.”

Wash wasn’t sure how long that would last, with all the revelations that would come. The next few days, weeks, maybe months, were going to be rough on them all. But Caboose was happy now. He’d take that, he’d make the most of that.

“I-I’m glad you are, Caboose,” He breathed, taking hold of one of Caboose’s hands, “I’m super glad you’re happy.”

“Because you love me?”

Washington laughed, “Yes, because I love you.”

Caboose grinned, and they fell into a comfortable silence. The larger man’s fingers laced into Wash’s hair and, just as Caboose surely knew he would, Washington melted. The tension began to fade from his body as his hair was combed through and played with, and he purred and let out other soft cat-like noises as he relaxed. He could feel Caboose relaxing under him at the same time.

There were other problems on the horizon, from Tucker’s unconsciousness to the fact Hargrove was still out there. Tucker would be okay in time and other issues would be solved along the way, but Washington knew the flicker of anger in his stomach would one day catch and he would tear apart the world to get at the man that had hurt his family one too many times.

But for now he’d stay with Caboose and let him stim with his hair. Because that was what was important right now. Because he’d almost lost him, and he never wanted to do that ever again.


End file.
